The present invention is directed to a process and apparatus for the dry cooling or quenching of coke, for example coke produced during a coking operation involving the formation of coke from preheated coal, whereby the hot coke is cooled in two zones. That is, the hot coke is cooled in a first zone by means of the crude or raw coke oven gas generated during the coking operation to form the coke. During this first cooling step, the raw coke oven gas is cleaned by the hot coke. After this first cooling step, the coke is further cooled in a second zone by means of a heat carrier gas.
This general type of process and apparatus have been proposed in West German patent application No. P 30 00 808.3-24. In this proposal two treatment zones, i.e. a cleaning zone and a cooling zone are provided as two stages and are mechanically separated from each other by a lock which creates a substantially gas-tight separation between the two zones. This separation however can impede the continuity of the coke cooling operation. The heat carrier gas for the second zone may be the flue gas from a coking furnace and or an inert gas which is totally separate from the overall coking operation, such as blast furnace gas. Accordingly, in this proposal it is necessary to provide an additional source of gas to carry out the coke cooling operation.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,895,448 discloses a dry coke cooling operation carried out in a reactor or vessel having two zones which are in full and open communication with each other. A circulating gas which operates as a heat carrier gas and a cooling gas is introduced into the transitional area between the two zones of the vessel. It would not be possible to employ the system of this U.S. patent to achieve the cleaning of the raw coke oven gas intended in the above West German patent application.